UPDATE TUESDAY 2 p.m.:
The Hamden Police Department are investigating the three burglaries and one attempted burglary that occurred early Sunday morning where the residences’ windows were open and their screens were cut or removed, according to Hamden Police.
It is not known if the individual committing the burglaries is a student, Chief of Public Safety David Barger said.
The first Hamden Police investigation revealed that an individual entered the ground-level residence of two female students while they were sleeping.
“It appears that the individual cut a screen and then entered through an open window” Captain Ronald Smith said in a press release.
Two laptops were stolen in this burglary, according to Barger.
The second reported burglary investigation revealed that early Sunday morning, three female students heard a noise from the downstairs area of their ground-level dorm, Smith said. They then discovered that their window was open and the screen was removed. A male was observed fleeing from their residence, Smith said.
Sophomore Shelby Hub lives in the residence hall where the attempted robbery occurred.
“We were just nervous and scared,” Hub said. “We were not anticipating obviously somebody to be in the room at that time of night. Nor for it to be a complete stranger.”
The third reported burglary investigation revealed that an individual had entered the ground-level residence of two male students, Smith said. Once inside, electronic equipment was stolen. The students were in their second-floor bedrooms while the burglary occurred.
The attempted burglary occurred when an individual attempted to pry open a ground-level residence.
Sophomore Jesse Laico of Village 503 had his Xbox stolen in the third burglary. At around 2:30 a.m. on Sunday morning, Laico heard the rustling of the window blinds from his common room and the slam of the door. When he came downstairs, he saw that his Xbox was gone and called Public Safety.
“I’m angry and kind of upset that we pay $50,000 to go here and kids feel they need to steal stuff,” Laico said. “I don’t feel safe in my own room.”
According to Laico’s roommate Patrick McAssey, the students also had an Xbox, a large television and a playstation in their room.
Director of Residential Life Jennifer Crane sent an email to Village residents Monday afternoon, encouraging them to close and lock their windows and keep their valuables out of sight. Crane warned students not to let strangers into their building and not to enter their residence hall through their windows.
“I encourage you to discuss this with your suitemates regarding how you all can be part of keeping your suite and belongings are safe,” Crane said in the email.
Hub said that she will be keeping her door closed and her windows locked from now on, but McAssey said that these precautions may not work.
“It just gets so hot in here that we can’t keep our windows closed all the time, especially when we’re sleeping,” McAssey said. “Obviously we’re going to keep our stuff more hidden, but [the Xbox] was not even close to the window. He came in and went all the way into the common room and found the Xbox. I mean there are some precautions you can take, but you can’t be too overly crazy about it.”
In an email sent to students on Sunday evening, Public Safety asked students to report any suspicious activity.
“I received a number of emails back directly to me regarding things that people had seen and people had heard and that type of thing,” Barger said. “We’re going to be working through those leads right now and see what we can come up with.”
In a second email to students on Monday, Public Safety asked that students continue to report what they know by calling the department at 203 582 6200 or using the anonymous QU Tip Line at at 203-424-0975 or qutipnow.org. All information will be kept confidential.
This is the first incident of burglary this semester, according to Barger. Last year, students broke into Residence Halls and stole IPhones, Barger said. Public Safety caught these students and recovered the stolen cellphones.
UPDATE MONDAY 5 p.m.: The Hamden Police Department are investigating the three burglaries and one attempted burglary that occurred early Sunday morning where the residences’ windows were open and their screens were cut or removed, according to Hamden Police.
The first Hamden Police investigation revealed that an individual entered the ground-level residence of two female students while they were sleeping.
“It appears that the individual cut a screen and then entered through an open window. Electronic equipment was stolen in the burglary,” Captain Ronald Smith said in a press release.
The second reported burglary investigation revealed that early Sunday morning, three female students heard a noise from the downstairs area of their ground-level dorm, Smith said. They then discovered that their window was open and the screen was removed. A male was observed fleeing from their residence, Smith said.
The third reported burglary investigation revealed that an individual had entered the ground-level residence of two male students, Smith said. Once inside, electronic equipment was stolen. The students were in their second floor bedrooms while the burglary occurred.
The attempted burglary occurred when an individual attempted to pry open a ground-level residence.
It is not known if the individual is a student, Chief of Public Safety David Barger said. Public Safety is still investigating this case in conjunction with the Hamden Police Department, according to Barger.
Director of Residential Life Jennifer Crane sent an email to Village residents Monday afternoon, encouraging them to close and lock their windows and keep their valuables out of sight. Crane warned students not to let strangers into their building and not to enter their residence hall through their windows.
“I encourage you to discuss this with your suitemates regarding how you all can be part of keeping your suite and belongings are safe,” Crane said in the email.
In an email sent to students on Sunday evening, Public Safety asked students to report any suspicious activity.
“I received a number of emails back directly to me regarding things that people had seen and people had heard and that type of thing,” Barger said. “We’re going to be working through those leads right now and see what we can come up with.”
In a second email to students on Monday, Public Safety asked that students continue to report what they know by calling the department at 203 582 6200 or using the anonymous QU Tip Line at at 203-424-0975 or qutipnow.org. All information will be kept confidential.
This is the first incident of burglary this semester, according to Barger. Last year, students broke into Residence Halls and stole IPhones, Barger said. Public Safety caught these students and recovered the stolen cellphones.
UPDATE MONDAY 3:30 p.m.: Public Safety received a report this morning of a third burglary in the Village this weekend, according to Chief of Public Safety David Barger.
Yesterday Public Safety emailed students regarding two burglaries in the Village where two laptops and an Xbox were stolen. In this third burglary, nothing appeared to be taken from the room, Barger said.
“You don’t need to steal something to have a burglary under Connecticut statute,” Barger said. “It means you enter a residence or a building, apartment with an attempt to commit a crime therein. So we have to assume that’s it’s not just a criminal trespass, but a burglary. They wanted to commit a crime.”
A person or people entered the rooms in the Village through unlocked windows, according to Barger. It is not known if these people are students, he said. Public Safety is still investigating this case in conjunction with the Hamden Police Department, according to Barger.
In the email sent yesterday, Public Safety asked students to report any suspicious activity.
“I received a number of emails back directly to me regarding things that people had seen and people had heard and that type of thing,” Barger said. “We’re going to be working through those leads right now and see what we can come up with.”
This is the first incident of burglary this semester, according to Barger. Last year, students broke into Residence Halls and stole IPhones, Barger said. Public Safety caught these students and recovered the stolen cellphones.
Barger advises students to contact the Department of Public Safety at 203-582-6200 or 111 from any campus phone or use the QU TipLine if they see someone or something that may appear to be out of the ordinary.
Stay with The Chronicle for updates.
